Dear Trekker,
A historic event took place this month that I must underline. I am compelled to do so! Every now and then something happens in our world which establishes that man is, of all created beings, something special, capable of extraordinary achievement, and can, with God as part of the equation, do extraordinary things. Would that the state motto of Ohio were the motto of many states… “With God, all things are possible.” This is a portion of Matthew 19:26: “With man (alone), some things are impossible, but with God, all things are possible.”
You may have guessed I am referring to the Chilean miracle. Never before have so many been buried so deep for so long in the bowels of the earth. If rescue were to occur, resources of God and man had to emerge, of both those buried and those above ground. And then it happened, faster than anyone could have imagined, without a hitch. Lives have been forever renewed and changed, and tears flowed freely as each of the 39 miners emerged from the tomb of death. This old soldier shed a tear or two as each in their own way and with loved ones, rejoiced, prayed and praised God.
As I start to pen these words, one psalm keeps reverberating through my thoughts… Psalm 8. Note verses 3-6: “When I (David) consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that You are mindful (notice and care for) him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You made him ruler over the works of Your hands; you put everything under his feet.”
Trekker, always keep one thing clear in your mind. In all of God’s creation, man alone is special, in a class by himself. Don’t get sidetracked by the lack of detail in the “how”, the sequencing or the time span. It happened. It is the only plausible explanation for the making of intelligible history. Man makes history and records it. This is true because God “made him ruler over the works of your (God’s) hands and put everything under his feet.” Hence, man is charged to reign over the creation on behalf of God. Clearly it is declared that God and man are to work together in caring for and husbanding all creation. This is history, God and man’s story, merged.
When man achieves and climbs great heights above or descends to great depths within the earth, he is exercising the Divine mandate to “be fruitful (in labor) and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it.” (Genesis 1:28)
A follow-on thought emerges quickly… okay, but why was this rescue so successful? I think there are good and valid reasons, which combined together, are a recipe for great success in “subduing and ruling” as good stewards. Take heed trekker!
The first essential when the odds seem insurmountable is hope! There is no substitute for hope, to see possibility, not irredeemable despair. Leadership must lead citizens to climb the mountain of hope. How apropos the Chileans named the operation camp, “Camp Hope”. And who set the pace? The President of Chile, the leader of the nation. He held on to hope when others had none. He believed! Something tells me he wasn’t surprised when the tapping was heard on day 17. The relationship between hope and prayer is too intrinsic to dissect. But leaders must exercise both, and never doubt. Followers expect leaders to cast a vision of hope and possibility. When circumstances are bleak, as in Chile, still there must be hope.
The second essential is simply hard work. Commitment of so many countries, many people, many talents… it is just amazing the resources made available, the expertise assembled, the sense of urgency and dispatch, the courage and initiative… the spirit of cooperation when politics, division, and cultural differences are laid aside! The guy on the “jack hammer” to bore through the hundreds of feet is a Colorado citizen and hero in my state. Called out of Afghanistan to Chile, he simply “showed up” with necessary tools and skills, and saved the day! God uses each of us in every situation.
The final essential is clearly trust. Only God knows how many prayers around the world ascended on high. God loves to answer our prayers, our pleading, our hopes. Nothing escapes His notice. Then the trust in one another… what a joy to behold! Oh, the trust in leadership. “We have done what the world was waiting for” exclaimed the leader of the 33, who clearly would not have survived apart from his wise, courageous decisions, particularly the first 17 days of silence.
Such events in history always have skeptics. “Well, they are grateful, but will their vows last?” Why question? We must celebrate the successes of life and build upon them. We must hope, work for and toward change, and trust God and one another. It is amazing what can be accomplished when we focus on the task at hand and lay aside prejudice, judgment and never worry about who gets the credit.
Trekker, we learn anew from this event how fragile life is. It is to be nurtured and cherished. Yet we are not in control of so much of life. We are all “miners”, boring our way through life, hoping for the best, and trusting tragedy will pass by us. When we realize we are not in control, we must turn to the One who is! God and man together are quite a combination, for with God, all things are possible.
My goal is to not leave God out of any relationship, any challenge, any responsibility. Some miners left God out of their lives. Now they have another chance, as do we all, every day of our lives. I am turning to and trusting Jesus, trekker. I invite you to join me. Together we can climb every mountain.
Thankful Jesus made a way for each of us out of the deep pit of sin,
Jim Meredith